After the Camps

Invisible Walls

Dreaming of the life that was to come after liberation sustained many during captivity. However, following liberation, it was not always so easy to turn dreams into reality. Former POW Lt. John Poppinger stated in a poem: “It takes a little while to get re-acquainted with Miss Freedom when you haven’t seen her for a long time.” Re-acquaintance with freedom came with marriage, family and careers. These became for some a “myriad of distractions from the nightmare of war.” Some POWs began to meet after the war to talk about their shared experiences, while others buried their time in captivity, trying to put the barbed wire world behind them. Like many other combat stories, POW memoirs emerged only after the distance of time had begun to be bridged. Some returned to narratives composed in the camps, or shortly thereafter, and shaped them into life stories. In other cases, the POW stories remained unread until their authors’ deaths, only discovered by family members after the opportunity for questions was gone. Through these tales and through the discoveries of the next generation, we are able to explore the sufferings and successes of those once known as “Kriegies.”

History Day Coordinator Nathan Huegen will explore the experiences of Louisiana’s WWII POW camps. Learn how the labor from these prisoners affected the state and how Louisiana residents reacted to them.

This 1953 film tells the story of a group of American airmen held in a German POW camp, who come to suspect that one of their number is a traitor. Produced and directed by Billy Wilder, it starred William Holden, Don Taylor, Robert Strauss, Neville Brand, Harvey Lembeck, and Peter Graves.

The story of a group of more than 300 American soldiers who were captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge. Because they were either Jewish or “looked” Jewish, they were sent to concentration camps instead of POW camps, where many died. Directed by Charles Guggenheim.

Moderated by Robert Miller (director of the Patton Foundation and author of Hidden Hell: Discovering My Father’s POW Diary) this panel will bring together children and grandchildren of men held as POWs during WWII.

Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children’s Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death (1969) is a satirical novel by Kurt Vonnegut about an Allied soldier called Billy Pilgrim. One of Vonnegut’s most influential and popular works. Join us for a discussion on this moving book.

Connect with The National WWII Museum

Presented by The Helis Foundation. With support from the Eugenie & Joseph Jones Family Foundation and The James R. Moffett Family Foundation. Special thanks to Betty B. Dettre.

The National WWII Museum tells the story of the American Experience in the war that changed the world — why it was fought, how it was won, and what it means today — so that all generations will understand the price of freedom and be inspired by what they learn.